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Why do we remain unprepared for the next terrorist attack or natural disaster? Where are we most vulnerable? How have we allowed our government to be so negligent? Who will keep you and your family safe? Is America living on borrowed time? How can we become a more resilient nation?

Americans are in denial when it comes to facing up to how vulnerable our nation is to disaster, be it terrorist attack or act of God. We have learned little from the cataclysms of September 11 and Hurricane Katrina. When it comes to catastrophe, America is living on borrowed time–and squandering it. In this new book, leading security expert Stephen Flynn issues a call to action, demanding that we wake up and prepare immediately for a safer future.

The truth is acts of terror cannot always be prevented, and nature continues to show its fury in frighteningly unpredictable ways. Resiliency, argues Flynn, must now become our national motto. With chilling frankness and clarity, Flynn paints an all too real scenario of the threats we face within our own borders. A terrorist attack on a tanker carrying liquefied natural gas into Boston Harbor could kill thousands and leave millions more of New Englanders without power or heat. The destruction of a ship with a cargo of oil in Long Beach, California, could bring the West Coast economy to its knees and endanger the surrounding population. But even these all-too-plausible terrorist scenarios pale in comparison to the potential destruction wrought by a major earthquake or hurricane.

Our growing exposure to man-made and natural perils is largely rooted in our own negligence, as we take for granted the infrastructure handed down to us by earlier generations. Once the envy of the world, this infrastructure is now crumbling. After decades of neglect, our public health system leaves us at the mercy of microbes that could kill millions in the next flu pandemic. Flash flooding could wipe out a fifty-year-old dam north of Phoenix, placing thousands of homes and lives at risk. The next San Francisco earthquake could destroy century-old levees, contaminating the freshwater supply that most of California relies on for survival.

It doesn’t have to be this way. The Edge of Disaster tells us what we can do about it, as individuals and as a society. We can–and, Flynn argues, we must–construct a more resilient nation. With the wounds of recent national tragedies still unhealed, the time to act is now.

Flynn argues that by tackling head-on, eyes open the perils that lie before us, we can remain true to our most important and endearing national trait: our sense of optimism about the future and our conviction that we can change it for the better for ourselves–and our children.

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Review

“Steve Flynn offers the answer not only to protecting America from terrorist attacks and natural disaster but also to revitalizing our democracy. This book is a must-read for all members of Congress, 2008 presidential candidates, and ordinary citizens who want to build a better and safer future.”–Anne-Marie Slaughter, dean, Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, Princeton University

Advance praise for The Edge of Disaster

“Steve Flynn has done it again. Like America the Vulnerable before it, The Edge of Disaster is the must-read book for every American, elected official, and presidential candidate who is committed to ensuring that our nation continue to thrive in perilous times.” –Mark Warner, former governor of Virginia

“Since 9/11, protecting our nation against a terrorist attack has consumed policy makers in Washington. What Stephen Flynn points out in The Edge of Disaster is that much of this effort has been directed overseas, often at the expense of our homeland and its much more likely areas of vulnerability. Laying out a series of potential disasters both manmade and natural, Flynn calls for a greater emphasis on preparedness and the ability of communities and the nation to recover. Painting an often frustrating and infuriating picture of missed opportunities, The Edge of Disaster is a call to action. The time to act is now. We can only hope that policy makers are listening.” –Christine Todd Whitman, former governor of New Jersey and former administrator, Environmental Protection Agency (2001-03)

“Steve Flynn’s book makes the very persuasive argument that national security preparedness is linked to natural disaster preparedness. By investing significantly in our critical infrastructure, in citizen preparedness, and most importantly in leadership, we can be better prepared for all hazards. A great book that I...

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The author appears to have got this situation correctly, although I am a Civil engineer, the accuracy of all these statements (for say highways, bridges, tunnels, ports, subways, water supplies, sanitary, etc.) would take an army of engineers a lot of time to give a real good accounting. I know that ASCE and the States are telling people that we have some real needs and we'd better start doing something. However, the main gist is definitely correct - Natural Disasters more likely than terrorism for way most people, FEMA is almost a joke (maybe it got better for Hurricane Sandy - say jury still out). And why are we spending all that money and putting all those people in harms way overseas even though we should do something - but fight a WAR! And the Rivers-Levees-Dams disasters waiting to happen are probably not slammed enough. And the Guvmint seems to keep way too much secret so the States/Locals and private entities don't know enough or the hands are tied. We can't protect everything all the time - the idea to concentrate somewhat on hardening targets and being better prepared to react is correct. And have The CIA-FBI-DOD started to cooperate and coordinate better? Pretty well done although i'm by no ways an expert (you have to trained, briefed and involved say directly to be such). Well, maybe a bit too harsh since was printed in 2007 and even he has had to modify some of this stuff. Altogether - good job.

I found this book to be right on target - Bulls-Eye. Flynn points out all the pitfalls in the current mode of planning responses to disasters and terrorist attacks on the part of government, congress and others. He calls attention to the complacency of the American Public, partly lulled by a secretive government failing to share how it addresses the issues of disaster planning and repairing and maintaining American infrastructure to withstand both natural disasters and terrorism.

He rightly points out that NO effort has been made to involve and rally the American Citizenry to respond to disasters or fight terrorism (Where is the war bond drive to fight the global war on terrorism?) Nor have efforts been made to invoLVe the private sector (except recently, the state of Texas in its Hurricane Evacuation planning will involve energy companies, Walmart, Home Depot and the HEB groceries to assure people's needs are met quickly when the next hurricane comes).

In short, we as Americans, according to Flynn seem to be living in a world of make-believe fog. It reminds him of the last days of the Roman empire.

He did not mention, that since 9/11 while the US is pre-occuppied with a war on terror, the economies of India and CHina have taken off. In fact, the "smart money" is investing in Brazil, Russia, India and China, not the US. Perhaps our weak infrstructure has a role to play.

What are the solutions? I have cut and pasted them from another review as a reminder of how urgent the need is to address this issue:

1) Force Washington to build national resiliency at home2) Put terrorism in the context of the other threats (see Wikipedia, "Ten Threats")3) Fix the infrastructure now4) Inform the American people, they are our greatest asset5) Tap the ingenuity and resources of the private sector6) Do not underestimate the value of individual preparedness7) Do not allow government to pretend the pandemic will not happen8) Discourage construction along vulnerable coastlines and in flood plains9) Properly fund and support local police and emergency responders10) Promote the concept of resiliency as a global imperative.

Buy this book. In fact, buy extra copies for those you love and cherish.

It is generally considered that defending the lives and property of its citizens is a central responsibility of all levels of government. In the U.S. the execution of this responsibility by the federal government has been misinterpreted to equate to fighting a so-called war against a phantom enemy called `Terror'. Yet as this book makes clear, National Security, the rubric under which this responsibility falls, incorporates not only protection against manmade and natural disasters, but recovery from them as well. The truth is that it is impossible for any country to provide 100 per cent protection from either and prudence would suggest that robust recovery plans are an essential part of national security.

Flynn argues in this book that the U.S. local and federal governments should embrace both risk management and risk mitigation as part of their security strategies. He makes the point that dangers of injury, death, and loss (i.e. risk) are unavoidable, but can be minimized with proper planning and execution. In this book he provides a realistic appraisal of the type vulnerabilities that put the U.S. at risk from manmade and natural forces and suggests methods to mitigate this risk. His suggestions are sound and founded in his own experience as a former U.S. Coast Guard Officer. He notes that some local jurisdictions have actually undertaken risk analysis and mitigation, but that the federal government apparently finds that risk management is a politically incorrect concept.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the obvious agency responsible for assessing National Security risks and their mitigation, but appears unable or unwilling to do so. Rather than implementing realistic risk management, DHS has chosen to try to provide complete protection against everything and has succeeded in protecting very little. In this conclusion Flynn very much complements the description of DHS given by Clark Kent Ervin in his book "Open Target" (Amazon.com).

Indeed this reviewer would suggest that readers interested in National Security issues would be advised to read both books.